Progressive Pilates for Weight Loss

I’m reviewing this workout after doing it a couple of times about a year ago.

General workout breakdown: This workout contains three distinct sections: a dance-inspired “cardio” section, a standing Pilates section (with traditional Pilates matwork moves adapted from horizontal to vertical), and a matwork section (with many moves adapted from the Pilates reformer machine cannon). There is a “bonus abs” section which is actually drawn from Liz’s other Progressive Pilates video: 10 Minute Target-Tone Workouts. The workout is about 40 minutes long, and the bonus section is 10 minutes. The overall pace is quick, both during the execution of moves and between moves.

Level: There’s no easy answer to this question. I got this video about a year ago, when I was just getting back to Pilates after a couple of years away. I considered myself an experienced beginner at that time with respect to Pilates and an intermediate at cardio. In addition, I took a total of 10-12 years of various types of dance when I was younger. That said, I found the cardio too easy, the standing Pilates section OK, and the matwork appropriately challenging, even a little tough in areas. I don’t wear a heart rate monitor, but I’m willing to bet my heart rate wasn’t significantly higher at the end of the section than at the beginning; walking around my apartment probably would have had the same effect for me. And I’ve tried a couple of standing Pilates routines. They were tricky, especially since you definitely need to know what you’re doing, but I didn’t ever feel the burn I was expecting. It’s possible I wasn’t doing the moves correctly or something, since I feel these moves much more on the floor. As for the matwork, parts of it were challenging, including planks and moves new to me that also added some difficulty–and interest.

That said, I’m not sure to whom I’d recommend this workout. Maybe to a formerly regular exerciser who has been away for a bit and wants something to ease the transition back into working out. Or maybe to someone who considers her/himself at the beginner/intermediate crossover with respect to Pilates and wants some variety. This is NOT a good video for Pilates beginners, no matter what the cover says. Liz does not offer enough instruction on form and breathing to make this an ideal first Pilates workout, and the standing Pilates series would probably only be effective for someone familiar with the moves already. The moves would be too easy for anyone past (or even at) a solidly intermediate level.

Class: Four thin young women accompany Liz, with one demonstrating modifications.

Music / Set / Other Production Notes: The music is better than average here, and the moves are nicely coordinated with the beat, thanks to Liz’s dance background. The interior set features hardwood floors and bright colors. The overall sound and picture quality are very good.

Equipment: mat (or equivalent).

Comments: You don’t need too much space for this workout. You should be able to lie down on your mat and move around comfortably while standing.

Are you going to lose weight just by adding this video? Most likely not unless you are getting back to exercising after some time away. But you knew that already . . .

DVD Notes: I don’t remember specifics, but there was a long intro to Liz and the Progressive Pilates series. I remember being able to skip that, though. You can select segments to do, but I can’t remember if you can program the segments in a certain order without having to go back to the menu each time.

Conclusion: Why did I trade this? Well, for part of the answer to that question see my comments on Liz as an instructor. The other part of the answer is that I just never got into this particular workout, which still puzzles me. I like ballet, I like Pilates, so why don’t I like Pilates-dance fusion and standing Pilates workouts? Of the dance-Pilates fusion workouts that I’ve had, the only ones I’ve kept are Breakthru Pilates Plus and Jennifer Kries"Pilates Method–Precision Pilates. (Interestingly enough, in both of those workouts the dance segments are for toning, not for cardio, so maybe it’s more that I haven’t found a ballet-inspired cardio dance that I like.)

I’ve heard this compared to Crunch’s Fat Burning Pilates because both have dancy cardio portions, but I think it’s also comparable to Denise Austin’s Power Zone–Mind Body Soul because of the movement combinations and standing Pilates portions. I haven’t done the Crunch, but I acquired the Denise about the same time as PP for WL. I liked the Denise a little better, mainly because of Lisa Wheeler’s touch, but I ended up trading that one away, too. (In other words, I’m not the best person to ask about these types of workouts.)

I will say that if you like the idea of having some different matwork moves for variety, I’d advise you to get Liz’s 10 Minute Target Tone Workouts because the “bonus” is actually a significant portion of the reformer matwork from this video. I personally liked Target Tone better anyway.

This is similar to Ellen's Crunch videos but kinder to the knees. The first 20 minutes are standing Pilates but brisk then the rest is on the mat. I don't have too many Pilates videos so some of the terms that Liz uses meant nothing to me so it was difficult to follow her at times. If someone hasn't ever done Pilates, they would be lost at times.

There are four background exercisers, same as in the other Progressive Pilates video. One of them, Corey, does modifications.

Overall, a good video.